CHENNAI: Pothole-ridden roads, lack of sewage system and faulty streetlights are the banes of industrial estates in and around Chennai. Roads dug up for laying high-voltage electric cables and stormwater drainage works have made matters worse at the Guindy Industrial Estate.
Roads are virtually non-existent here said KV Kanakambaram, President Emeritus of Guindy Industrial Estate Manufacturers’ Association.
“Being one of the oldest industrial estates in the country, it used to have 46 staff to maintain the place, but now a single project officer from Tamil Nadu Small Industries Development Corporation (SIDCO) is responsible for the maintenance of 10 industrial estates. There is no action on complaints and work has not been carried out as promised,” he added.
Another small-scale industry representative said they have to endure poor infrastructure despite a two-fold increase in taxes levied by the Greater Chennai Corporation and Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board.
Taxes have gone up from Rs 25,000 to Rs 58,000 for me (half-early) but none of our demands has been met, he said. Lack of stormwater drains is a long-pending issue, said K Baskaran, Secretary of Kakkalur Industrial Estate Manufacturers’ Association. He said the PWD canal passing through the estate is flooding the area. Manufacturers also raised concerns about repeated incidents of robbery in Kakkalur.
Manufacturers from industrial estates across Chennai including Padapai, Ambattur, Thirumudivakkam and Thirumalisai complain about the lack of basic infrastructures like boundary walls, waste disposal systems, ATMs, and street names among other issues. Officials from SIDCO could not be reached for comments.